BIR Ruling [DA-192-00]

March 30, 2000 BIR RULING [DA-192-00] 270; DA-1-98; DA-192-2000 Office of the Solicitor General 134 Amorsolo St., Legaspi Village Makati City Attention: Atty. Magdangal M. de Leon Assistant Solicitor General This refers to your letter dated February 29, 2000 relative to the petition for naturalization filed by ALEXANDER LIM YAP, a 'citizen or subject of the Republic of China' who is presently residing at 6 Willow St., Victoneta North, Potrero, Malabon, Metro Manila; and that in relation to his petition, you now in effect request for an information on the past and present business and other activities of the said ALEXANDER LIM YAP with emphasis on the following matter: his annual income, real estate holdings in this country, if any, with their corresponding valuations and whether he has faithfully complied with our tax laws during the period of his residence in the Philippines. Please be informed that Section 270 of the Code of 1997 which provides, viz: "SEC. 270. Unlawful Divulgence of Trade Secrets . Except as provided in Section 71 of this Code and Section 26 of' Republic Act Numbered 6388, any officer or employee of the Bureau of Internal Revenue who divulges to any person or makes known in any other manner than may be provided by law information regarding the business, income, or estate of any taxpayer, the secrets, operation, style or work, or apparatus of any manufacturer or producer, or confidential information regarding the business of any taxpayer , knowledge of which was acquired by him in the discharge of his official duties, shall upon conviction for each act or omission, be punished by a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000) but not more than One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000), or suffer imprisonment of not less than two (2) years but not more than five (5) years, or both." (Emphasis supplied) In Opinion No. 72, Series of 1991, the Secretary of Justice opined that individual income tax returns under the first paragraph of the aforequoted Section "shall constitute public records and be open to inspection as such upon the order of the President of the Philippines under rules and regulations to be prescribed . . . by the Secretary of Finance." The existing rules on inspection of such returns provide that such inspection is allowed only to (a) BIR officials and employees, whose official duties require such inspection; (b) the person who made the return, or his duly constituted attorney in fact; (c) the administrator, executor, or trustee of the taxpayer's estate or the duly constituted attorney-in-fact of such administrator, executor, or trustee, where the maker of the return has dies; and (d) in the discretion of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, one of the heirs of law or next of kin of such deceased person upon showing that he has a material interest which will be affected by the information contained in the return. Based on the foregoing, except for a certification whether or not the said ALEXANDER LIM YAP had filed his income tax return religiously, we regret to inform you that we cannot grant the other request in view of the prohibition under the Section 270 of the Tax Code of 1997. This will, therefore, serve as an authority for the Assistant Commissioner, Information Systems and Operation Service to furnish you or your duly authorized representative with the information whether or not ALEXANDER LIM YAP had filed his income tax return religiously upon presentation of your or your authorized representative's identification card/paper. Very truly yours, Commissioner of Internal Revenue By: (SGD.) SIXTO S. ESQUIVIAS IV Deputy Commissioner (Legal and Enforcement Group)